


Normal People

by TimAndJava



Series: The Bibliophile Files [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU
Genre: English nerds, Fangirl, Literature, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-06 12:02:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12817104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimAndJava/pseuds/TimAndJava
Summary: Jason and Tim are bad at like. Or love. Or whatever this is supposed to be.A direct sequel to "Rooftops and Book Drops."





	Normal People

**Author's Note:**

> The sequel nobody asked for. I just love them being bibliophiles, okay?

It's been an entire week since Tim last saw Jason.

A whole seven days since the older man had handed Tim a book with a profession of like (or love? Too early to tell) and then just disappeared.

And it was pissing Tim off.

One night, before his patrol, Tim hops on the comm to talk to Barbara. Because she was the only knew about Tim and Jason's....situation.

Tim curls up in the large computer chair that faces the cave's main monitor, and switches on his comm.

"Hey, Oracle," Tim says into his comm, "you busy?"

"Not particularly," Barbara answers swiftly. "What do you need, Red."

"Uh," Tim says awkwardly, "it's about hood."

"Oh," Barbara drawls back. Tim can't see the woman, but he knows that one, if not both, of Barbara's eyebrows are raised.

"Yeah," Tim sighs. "It's been a week."

"A week since the rooftop book drop?" Barbara asks.

Tim groans into the comm. "Jesus, you gave it a name? A name that rhymes?"

"Of course I did," Barbara says with a giggle, "how else would I explain the story to Wing? Circus boy loves some word play."

Tim groans again, louder this time. "You told Dick?"

"Code names, Red," Barbara chides. "And duh, this story was too good to keep to myself."

"Whatever," Tim grumbles. "Can you help me, or not?"

"You never said anything about needing help, Red," Barbara answers.

"Well, I do. Need your help," Tim mutters.

"Finally, the smartest of the batboys has realized that the batgirls are where it's at," Barbara teases.

"Yeah, yeah," Tim mumbles, "on with it. Help, please?"

"Always so demanding," Barbara says. The sound of frantic typing fills the silence. "Hold on, Red, I've got to help Wing with something. Give me five, stay on the channel."

Barbara switches her comm, and Tim is left alone with static.

Tim contorts himself into the fetal position and stares at the digital clock on the computer. It was 8:30 already, and he'd told Bruce he'd be out by 9:15. Could Barbara really fix his problem in forty-five minutes?

Tim is drawn out of his swirling thoughts by of all people, Damian.

The younger boy thumps down the cave's steps, and stares at Tim's twisted form.

"What are you doing, Drake?" Damian asks. "You look like an idiot."

Tim rights himself in the chair, and pulls his knees up to his chest.

"Just waiting to talk to Babs," Tim says, "grownup stuff."

Damian smirks. "So it's about Todd."

Tim's mouth opens in surprise. "How the hell do you know?"

"Grayson has a big mouth," Damian said with a wry smile.

"Damn him," Tim says under his breath.

"So what do you need Barbara for?" Damian asks.

Tim sighs. "I was hoping she could help me. With Jason."

Damian walks over to the computer chai, and sits cross legged in front of it. He looks up at Tim and tilts his head.

"Perhaps I can help," Damian offers.

"Why are you being nice to me?" Tim asks with a frown.

Damian shrugs. "Perhaps if Todd can work out his sexual frustration-"

"Stop, stop, stop!" Tim shrieks, covering his face with his hands. "I am not talking to you about my sex life."

"Or lack thereof," Damian laughs.

"Damian, you're like eleven, drop it," Tim whines.

"I'm thirteen, you moron," Damian snarks back. "Do you want my assistance or not?"

"Only if we don't talk about sex," Tim levels, crossing his arms over his chest.

Damian raises his hands up in surrender. "Fine. No discussion of coitus."

"God, help me," Tim whispers. 

"Alright," Damian begins. "The solution to your problem is simple. Just give him a book that you love, the way he gave you one."

Tim processes Damian's words, and a smile slowly creeps into his face. 

"Barbara," Tim says into his comm, "your assistance is no longer needed. I'm turning the comm off for a while."

Tim yanks the comm unit out of his ear, and ruffles Damian's hair.

"Stop that, Drake!" Damian protests.

"You're a lifesaver, Damian," Tim says as he heads back upstairs, "but if you tell anyone I said so, I'll have to kill you."

\---

Two hours later, Tim is following Jason into one of his safe houses.

Jason enters through an actual door, while Tim slips in through the kitchen window window.

As soon as Tim's feet hit the ground, Jason is there, a few yards away, with a shotgun aimed at Tim's head.

"Woah there, hood," Tim says, "it's just me.

Jason lowers his gun. "Normal people use the door."

Tim shrugs. "Since when are bats normal?"

"A valid point," Jason answers.

The two stay locked in an awkward silence for a few moments.

Then all of the sudden, Tim steps forward, plants a kiss on Jason's lips, slips something into Jason's hands, and then abruptly disappears.

Jason is too shocked to go after him.

As soon as Jason comes out of his kiss-fueled haze, he looks down at his hands and sees what Tim slipped him.

A book, a copy of Rainbow Rowell's "Fangirl."

And a passage, highlighted in light blue ink.

"I think I can live without you, but it won't be any kind of life."

And scribbled below was a note, in Tim's chicken scratch handwriting.

"Call me. Preferably soon."


End file.
